Excise Department officials at the Amaravila check-post in Thiruvananthapuram district will soon get the trained dog from the Kerala Police Academy, Thrissur, to sniff out illicit liquor being smuggled.

At a function held at the amphitheatre of the academy here on Saturday in connection with the final rehearsal of the second batch of police dogs to pass out from the institution, Chacky displayed the skill.

In front of the excited audience, the German Shepherd detected the liquor bottles hidden in one of the five briefcases placed at the theatre.

B.S. Mohammed Yasin, Director of the academy, said it was the first time that a dog had been trained to trace liquor.

Obeying their masters, the dogs paraded through the theatre and saluted the guests. They demonstrated the skills acquired during their training at the academy.

The sniffer dog Happy’s duty was to detect explosives hidden in a bag. He sniffed out the bag in a few seconds.

Eight-month-old Jancy was the youngest among the dogs and everybody’s darling. But she turned into a daredevil when somebody attacked her trainer. She pounced on the person and kept at it until she received orders from her trainer to back up.

Obedience and action drills, refusal of food given by strangers, scent discrimination and property guarding were part of the demonstration.

Superintendent of Police V. Chandran said the training of the dogs had reached the final phase and the passing-out parade would be held in December.

Fourteen sniffers and six trackers have been trained. They will be deployed in various districts in the State. The academy is the only police dog training centre in South India.

Mr. Yasin said a dog-breeding centre would be opened at the academy in January. The Union government had sanctioned Rs.90 lakh to start a communication and computer school there, he added.